Y/n laid her head on the cold desk in front of her, praying for her punishment to be over. This was the minimum penalty that Mr. Bellanger could give due to Mrs. Giraud's bickering.

She had already finished her homework in minutes and needed to wait out the hour.

Mr. Bellanger knew that her teacher tended to be uptight, since she commonly reported students for being late, wearing makeup, or any trivial matter.

He didn't hold Y/n's dress code violation against her and lessened her detention hours to one.

The attending teacher had fallen asleep, and she considered leaving before anyone could notice. She realized that she would get a heavier penalty so she gave up on the idea. She had plans that she couldn't cancel.

Y/n promised to meet with Michèle and Simone after her detention so they could go to a movie together, so they would be outside soon.

The door had slowly opened with a low creak, silent enough to not wake the teacher. Joseph had snuck through the unlocked door, slowly making his way to the seat next to Y/n. He was forty minutes late.

She tore a piece of paper from her notebook and scribbled down a sentence before passing it to him.

"Where were you?"

He wrote quickly before passing back the note.

"Helping Dupin set up for his party since his parents are out of town. It's later tonight if you're going."

Y/n stared at the note for a bit longer, contemplating if she should go. After the movie, she had no plans. Maybe she could even bring her friends?

She began to write quickly as she noticed the teacher slowly waking up.

"Time and place?"

Joseph quickly pocketed the note once the teacher began looking at him. He hoped that he could come up with a good enough excuse if the teacher asked where he was.

"Have you been here the entire time?" The teacher pointed at him questioningly.

"I-"

"He has, I think he was sitting in the back though." Y/n cut Joseph off before he could get himself in trouble.

The teacher let it go, assuming his bad memory got the best of him. The time had flown by, and it was ten minutes before the two were allowed to go.

"You two can head out. I have to head home to take care of my kids." The teacher spoke without a care in the world, packing up his stuff and leaving in the middle of his sentence.

"It's at 556 Melrose Street, show up around 10." He explained the details as they left the classroom.

"Can Michèle and Simone come along?" Joseph's facial expression shifted uncomfortably when she mentioned the two.

He disliked the two girls and Michèle's brother, and he couldn't fathom the thought of having to be near them all night.

They had caused him pain that would last for his entire life, and he didn't even want to see them outside of school.

He knew that they were her close friends, so he decided to let it slide for one night.

"You can invite them if you want, make sure to update me." He held his tongue to avoid any conflict.

They stepped onto the stoop of the school's main entrance and realized they were heading separate ways.

"I'll see you tonight, Y/n." He offered a half smile before heading towards his parked motorbike.

She waved at him with a smile drawn on her face.

Y/n walked towards the main courtyard, planning to wait at the gates until Michèle and Simone arrived.

"Y/n, why were you talking to Descamps?" She jerked her head to the side to see the girls behind her.

She had no way to explain herself speaking to their so-called 'enemy.' Y/n attempted to collect her thoughts and tell them honestly, but she was cut off before she could speak.

"He defended you today during Mrs. Giraud's class! Do you have something going on with him?" Michèle spoke in a bitter tone as she addressed the possibility.

Y/n tried to calm the situation, "It's nothing like that! We just occasionally speak!"

"Oh my god, was he the guy you told me about? I should've known, I see how you two look at each other!" Simone felt betrayed even thinking about her and Joseph together.

Y/n felt completely bombarded with the accusations. She was speechless, and she usually knew what to say.

There were no correct words to explain everything to them.

"I can explain, I promise! Just let me-" She was once again cut off with even more anger.

"We don't need to hear any more of this. How could we ever trust you again?" The girls walked away with disappointed faces, not allowing Y/n enough time to clear the air.

Had she just lost two of her best friends in a day? There was no way of processing how it all happened so quickly.

They had assumed everything after seeing one conversation between the two.

Her heart felt empty, and she felt helpless. She found a bench to sit on as the sun began to set. The tears created a path from her eyes, dripping down from her jaw onto her skirt.

She suppressed her emotions during the past few weeks, keeping a smile on her face throughout every issue. She couldn't keep herself composed anymore.

The sky transitioned into the darkness while the moon shimmered with a hypnotizing glow. The stars sparkled, contrasting with the absence of color.

Why did tonight have to be so beautiful on such a miserable day?

Y/n checked the watch on her wrist and was shocked that it was already 8:00. The movie had already started, but she could catch the middle of it if she tried.

She decided to take her chances at the movie instead of sitting on the bench feeling depressed.

While she walked to the nearby theater, she wiped away her tears and reapplied her mascara in her hand-held mirror.

She focused on her new goals of going to the theater and the party instead of dwelling on her broken friendship.

She found a seat in the middle row with a perfect view of the screening. Y/n loved romance movies and couldn't help but feel warm whenever she watched a cheesy confession scene.

The movie was exactly as she expected, with the classic trope of the man finally confessing his undying love and marrying the girl.

She threw her concessions into the trash on her way out while daydreaming of her own possible love story.

Y/n quickly checked her watch and realized that she would be late for the party.

The neighborhood was close to her house, so she remembered which way to go from the movie theater.

She struggled to find the individual house since the house numbers barely corresponded to each other.

Once she found the house, she pushed the door handle to find the door open. Music blared throughout the house as people crowded every corner of the house.

Y/n pushed through the mass of drunk people, looking for at least one person she knew. She saw the back of Joseph's head and decided to head towards him.

He leaned over a table filled with drinks with a skeptical face. Joseph was indecisive and didn't want a drink that would have him passed out indefinitely.

He decided on drinking one beer so he wouldn't get intoxicated.

Y/n tapped him on the shoulder, almost making him spill the bottle he picked up.

"You made it! Are you with your friends?" He took a swig of his drink before gazing at her curiously.

She held her breath as she avoided eye contact with him. He noticed the distressed look in her eyes when he mentioned them.

"What happened? We can go somewhere private to talk if you'd like?" He took the side of her face into his palm, making eye contact with her.

She nodded, allowing him to take his chance to leave the crowded room.

He took her arm and led her upstairs to what looked like a guest bedroom, proceeding to sit at the edge of the bed.

"I don't want to ruin this, you should have fun." She mumbled quietly.

"You don't ruin anything for me. Talking to you always brightens my mood, or just being around you in general." He spoke delicately, making her heart warm.

"How do you always know what to say? Here I am, struggling to talk!" Y/n laughed while he admired the smile on her face.

The pair went silent, staring at each other in a comfortable silence. Joseph's eyes shifted to her lips before looking back into her eyes.

It felt like they were talking through their glances.

"Can I kiss you?" He asked timidly, afraid of her response.

Before he could say another word, their lips connected. Their bodies pressed against each other as their lips pressed harder.

Y/n ran her fingers through his toffee-colored hair as he rested his hand near her jawline.

He tilted further to the side, deepening the kiss. Her breathing stopped, focused fully on the feeling of his soft lips.

They parted their lips, gasping to try to even out their breath.

Y/n laid on top of him, looking down at his face. His face was embarrassingly cherry-colored as his heart pounded at an extreme rate.

She giggled at the wide-eyed expression on his face. He was completely different than his first impression.

She gave him a quick peck on the lips before getting off him. Joseph was surprised that he even kissed her.

It was only something he had imagined at the back of his mind when he was alone.

"Let's go downstairs and end tonight on a good note!" Y/n smiled at him before dragging him down with her.

The warm feeling inside of Joseph's chest had only became stronger, and he began to grow fond of her.